It is amazing how close it is getting to another season of baseball. Spring training has started in the states of Florida and Arizona and just about all the transactions have been finalized. Rosters have been constructed, so now it is time to get a sense of what to expect from each of the 30 MLB teams. Some are easier to get an idea of; many of which we could probably agree with the projections. If we all put a list of the top five MLB teams and their outlooks, most of us might agree on four of the top five. The same could be said about the bottom five. But as many as 20 teams are kind of in the middle; very difficult to call what to expect what to see from them. If you are into computer generated predictions along the lines of MLB The Show, then fangraphs and the PECOTA system are right up your alley. Other outlets discuss like to give teams credit for making the postseason the year before. Last season, six of the ten postseason teams did not make the playoffs the year before. As I preview all 30 teams, I will discuss the off season, what the projected roster will look like and what is happening on the farm. Afterwards, I will give a reason I have a team finishing with a certain record based off the Las Vegas over/ unders. As always, feel free to comment, tweet me or post on my facebook page https://www.facebook.com/Passed-Ball-Show-283493218338944/. The Baltimore Orioles won the American League East division in 2014. They were set for a disappointment in 2015 after losing top free agents Nelson Cruz and Nick Markakis. The Orioles got some very good pitching in 2014, but it seemed like the starters like of succeeded in mirrors. Chris Tillman, who won 13 games and pitched to a 3.34 earned run average, slipped to a 11 win, 11 loss, 4.99 ERA in 2015. Bud Norris won 15 games and had a 3.65 ERA in 2014, he pitched so poorly that the Orioles released him in 2015 and he finished the season in the San Diego Padres bullpen. Last off season, I made my case why the Orioles should have added another starting pitcher, particularly one who could lead or be a part of the top of the staff. The Orioles did not and Tillman, Norris and Miguel Gonzalez (9-12, 4.91) all had bad seasons like many predicted. The one bright spot in the starting rotation was Wei-Yin Chen, who was 11-8, 3.34 in just over 191 innings for the Orioles last season. Unfortunately, Chen himself left as a free agent to join the Miami Marlins in what was one of the best team free agent signings of the off season. The Orioles brought in Yovani Gallardo (13-11, 3.42, just over 184 innings pitched) from the Texas Rangers and after the extremely thorough physical examination (the Orioles are known for failing physicals for reasons other teams would not), renegotiated his contract for two seasons and a guaranteed $22 million. The Orioles biggest addition, though, was the re-signing of free agent first baseman Chris Davis (.262 batting average, 47 home runs, 117 runs batted in, 100 runs scored, .923 on base plus slugging) after a long, tenuous process. The signing of free agent Pedro Alvarez (.243, 27, 77, .787) and earlier trade for outfielder Mark Trumbo (.262, 22, 64, .759) should make up for some of the power lost last off season when Cruz went to Seattle and Markakis went to Atlanta. The Orioles also brought back Matt Wieters, somewhat unexpectedly, after the catcher accepted the team's qualifying offer. They also maintained their solid presence in their bullpen by bringing back right hander Darren O'Day (6-2, 1.52, 82 Ks in just 65 innings). The Orioles offense should improve this season. Not just because of the additions of Alvarez and Trumbo and the return of Davis and Wieters, but because of the emergence of star third baseman Manny Machado. Last season was nothing short of spectacular as the 22 year-old played in all 162 games, hit .286 with 35 home runs, 86 runs batted in, 181 hits, 102 runs scored and finished with a .861 OPS. It is scary to think that Machado may be able to take his game to another level this season, an occurrence which might change this writer's outlook on the entire team for the season, Wieters hit 20 home runs each season from 2011-2013 before his Tommy John surgery cost him most of the past two seasons. All Star Adam Jones (.269, 27, 82, .782) will be back in center field and is the face of the franchise. Shortstop JJ Hardy (.219, 8, 37, .564) returned from an injury himself last season and struggled to return to the form that saw him hit 77 home runs from 2011-2013. Second baseman Jonathan Schoop (.279, 15, 39, .788) is just 24 this season and has a little room to grow. Hyun Soo Kim (.326, 28, 121, .979) comes over from the Korean Baseball Organization to play left field and likely platoon with longtime farmhand Nolan Reimold (.247, 6, 20, .738).The Orioles bench will consist of utility players Jimmy Parades (.275, 10, 42, .726) and Ryan Flaherty (.202, 9. 31, .631). Joey Rickard hit .321 and OPSed .874 in the minors last season and will get some time spelling Trumbo in the outfield. Caleb Joseph, the team's backup catcher, proved last season that he should get more of a look as a starting player. Look for the Orioles to use Joseph a lot early to preserve Wieters for the long season. Kim, Trumbo and either Joseph or Wieters will probably get some time at designated hitter with Alvarez spelling Davis occasionally at first base. While Machado seems likely to play nearly every inning at third base once again, the team has no shortages of players who can play third including Parades, Flaherty and Davis. While Alvarez and Trumbo have played the position, neither is likely to play third, even in cases of desperation.The Orioles bullpen will once again be solid with a couple of the game's best relief pitchers, Zach Britton (4-1, 1.92, 36 saves, 79 Ks, just under 66 IP) and O'Day. Brian Matusz (1-4, 2.94, 56 Ks, 49 IP) and Brad Brach (5-3, 2.72, 89 Ks, just over 79 IP) are better than average, giving the Orioles a solid seven through nine. I would expect a big improvement from Jason Garcia, despite the fact that he was just optioned to the minors. Taken in the Rule 5 draft from Boston (through Houston), Garcia possesses a strong arsenal that makes for a quality reliever. Left hander TJ Macfarlane and righty Chaz Roe will likely round out the Orioles bullpen. Lefty Cesar Cabral and righty Pedro Beato also have a chance to make the team. I saved the worst for last when discussing the 2016 Orioles. The bullpen could be great and at the very least, will be better than most. But what is a good bullpen on a team that lacks the starters to get them there. I spoke a little bit about Gallardo earlier, who is a suitable replacement for the loss of Chen. However, the Orioles projected number two and three starters, Tillman and Gonzalez, both digressed last season and need to bounce back or the rotation looks bad. Top pitching prospect Kevin Gausman (4-7, 4.25, 103 Ks, just over 112 IP) could be a key to the mix. If he reaches his original potential, the before mentioned three can all slide down. Ubaldo Jimenez (12-10, 4.11, 31 starts) was serviceable and will be a forth or fifth starter and right hander Michael Wright will attempt to provide some insurance. Look for the Orioles to add a back end of the rotation starter for some depth before the spring ends. They would also be wise to explore a trade for a dependable one through three. Looking at the Orioles farm system, the first player I would like to profile is Garcia. The minor league starting pitcher becoming a hard throwing late game reliever has become a thing and a healthy Garcia is a strong candidate to fit the build. Dylan Bundy could make the team as a reliever this season but is best suited for AAA to start the season. Garcia and Bundy are expected to join Britton as starters who end up serving a prominent role in the bullpen. First baseman Christian Walker is major league ready but is without a position to play in Baltimore. He hit 18 home runs in Triple- A last season. Hunter Harvey is battling some elbow problems once again and is questionable for the start of the season. He probably needs another full minor league season before the Orioles can think about putting him in their beleaguered rotation. Another to consider is right hander Mychal Givens. The 25 year- old struck out 79 in just over 57 innings last season at Triple- A Bowie. The signings of Gallardo and Alvarez put the Orioles in a better position than they were in a month ago. They need to get a lot out of Tillman, Gonzalez and Gausman if they expect to contend at all. A bad rotation could take its tole on the bullpen as great as it is. Trumbo and Alvarez add some thump to an already above average offensive unit and they are lucky to be managed by one of the best in Buck Showalter. Showalter has a pulse on this team and they will continue to over achieve for him. However, I look at the Yankees, Blue Jays and Red Sox and I simply see a better assembled group of players. Perhaps the Orioles can surprise with a good start and ride that into a long season like they did in 2014. I do not see it though. I see it far from being a disaster, though, and that is why I look at the Orioles as an 81-81 team. That is what they finished at a year ago and that is a half a win above where Las Vegas put them at 80.5.

People are generally critical of a team that underachieves, especially in a large media market like New York. Are the New York Mets underachievers? Definitely not; perhaps you can make a case that talent at the major league level has taken a step back every season since 2011. All Stars like Jose Reyes, Carlos Beltran, RA Dickey and Francisco Rodriguez have all been traded with the likes of Ruben Tejada, Lucas Duda, Shawn Marcum and Frank Francisco all brought in to replace them. Yes, the acquisitions of Zach Wheeler and Noah Syndergaard make the future very bright and of course with Matt Harvey give fans reason to be excited for what could be another Seaver, Koosman, Gentry or Gooden, Darling, Fernandez. Of course, the nightmare scenario happened in 1998 when the Mets young trio of Isringhausen, Pulsipher and Wilson never materialized so there should be some caution. The major thing that has bothered me over the last three plus seasons is the lack of depth at the major league level. The trade of 1B Ike Davis to the Pirates guarantees another Mets player, Lucas Duda, an every job. Don't worry Lucas, you do not have to look over your shoulder as there is not another 1B in the Mets organization that is on the verge of making an impact in the big leagues. All he has to do is ask Ruben Tejada, or Travis d'Arnaud for that matter, if they feel any footsteps in regards to their job security. The rebuttal of my statement would probably have to do with the thought of giving a player a chance. In my opinion, only d'Arnaud has not been given a complete chance to prove what he can do. Tejada is entering his 3rd season as the hands down everyday SS and Duda was a regular in the 2nd half of 2011 and was the given a starting job on opening day in both 2012 and 2013. Once again, no safety net is in place in case Duda does not perform. I apologize for not being able to find the actual stats, but I would assume the Mets have to be near the bottom of MLB in player trades, free agent signings (MLB contracts) and waiver claims since Sandy Alderson has taken over as Mets GM. I do know that the since Alderson was named GM on October 29, 2010, the Mets have made 14 trades, signed 14 free agents to MLB deals and claimed 5 players on waivers. They have also taken three players in the Rule 5 draft. The total trades, MLB FA signings and waiver claims for the Mets is 33. What does that mean? How does this compare to the other teams in the NL East? The Miami Marlins, since 10/29/2010, have made 20 trades, 14 MLB FA signings and 7 waiver claims for a total of 41. The Atlanta Braves made in the same time 25 trades, 12 MLB FAs and 5 waiver claims for a total of 42. The Philadelphia Phillies made a total of 24 trades, 13 MLB FA signings and 7 waiver claims for a total of 44. Finally, the Nationals made 28 trades, 10 MLB FA signings and 8 waiver claims in the same period for a total of 46. And lets break down these "so called" trades. Two of the trades involved Collin Cowgill; first to the Mets from Oakland and then from the Mets to LA. Another was the big acquisition of Chin-lung Hu from the Dodgers for LHP Michael Antonini and this is also counting the trade of Omar Quintanilla in 2012 to the Orioles for cash. Finally, one trade saw the Mets deal RHP Elvin Ramirez to the Nationals and the Athletics dealing infielder Brandon Hicks to the Mets. With the limited free agent signings, this includes the 2013 signings of Daisuke Matsuzaka and Rick Ankiel. Among the 5 waiver claims, they did get Anthony Recker and Jeremy Hefner. Maybe you have reached a point of reading this where you just want to know what to the point of this is. When I am talking about making roster additions, it does not have to be about money. Or maybe it is. Has the cheapness hit an all time low where the amount of players who will be on the MLB roster will be limited just to save a couple of bucks. Lack of competition means there is no chance the Mets could overpay a player who is not playing everyday, right? Is that what it has come down to? I admire the trades of Carlos Beltran and RA Dickey because of the potential of Wheeler and Syndergaard. Other than those two moves, Sandy Alderson has not put his stamp on this team. How many other GMs will be on their 4th season with a team and still run out more players that were signed or acquired by the previous GM? Maybe thats why the MLB team will be a second division team for the 6th straight season.

The Detroit Tigers came into this season with a soundly set offensive team. Though the loss of DH Victor Martinez led to the signing of 1B Prince Fielder, the plan was to play Miguel Cabrera at 3B, with Jhonny Peralta at SS and the outfield would consist of Austin Jackson, Brennan Boesch and Don Kelly. Brandon Inge and Ryan Raburn would change go from being 3B and OF respectively, to platooning at 2B, with Raburn seeing some time in the OF. Of course, Alex Avila was the catcher and Delmon Young would become the everyday DH.

But, similarly to 2011, when the plan was to use veteran OF/ DH Carlos Guillen as the everyday 2B, the plan would change over time. In 2011, the Tigers chose to go with the slicker fielder Ramon Santiago, moving Guillen back to the more comfortable utility role. It became much simpler for the Tigers this season once they acquired 2B Omar Infante from Miami in the deal that also brought them RHP Anibal Sanchez. However, the corner OFs went through a complete metamorphasis. Kelly, who was an important part of the 2011 Tigers, was a non factor this season. He would hit .186 in 113 ABs. Inge, who reluctently made the team after a tough spring training, was released by Detroit early in the season eventually signing with Oakland. Raburn was terrible, hitting just .172 in 205 ABs while playing more OF than 2B. Boesch played in 132 games, hitting .240, 12, 54 and was not in the starting lineup in any of Detroit's postseason games. The emergence of Andy Dirks is not a huge surprise. The 26 year old hit .322, 8, 35 in 88 games this season. Though it was limited time, Dirks .487 slugging percentage trailed only Fielder (.528) and Cabrera (.606) among Tigers players. Manager Jim Leyland decided to go with Berry and Avisial Garcia as a platoon in RF. This dragged on into the postseason, where Garcia, at age 21, got some postseason ABs despite batting only 47 times during the regular season (15-47, .315). On to Berry, who was taken in the rule 5 draft? in 2011 by the New York Mets, which I have no recollection of. That was the same offseason where the Mets took 2B Brad Emaus and RHP Pedro Beato in what would have been the same draft. Perhaps it was the minor league version, as Berry had no MLB spring training ABs that season. The prior season, he was taken on waivers by the San Diego Padres from the Philadelphia Phillies, where he had spent his entire minor league career. Before coming to the Tigers organization prior to the start of the 2012 season, he spent 2011 in the Cincinnati Reds farm system. Berry has few numbers that stand out, but did play well with the Tigers this season. Perhaps Leyland trusted him a little too much in the World Series, but it makes sense to stick with the players that got you there. See how changing the entire lineup worked for the New York Yankees. He hit .258, 2, 26 with 80 Ks in 94 games. However, he did have 21 SBs without being caught as well as 6 3Bs. And lets be honest, he was a better option than Raburn and Kelly and possibly even Boesch.

The 2010 San Diego Padres went 90-72 and just missed making the playoffs. If the 2nd Wild Card existed then like it does now, the Padres would have been in the playoffs. Like the 2012 New York Mets to this point, the Padres were expected to finish last and overachieved for the majority of the season, losing a late September battle to the eventual World Series Champion San Francisco Giants. That Padres team had some similarities to the current Mets team. Adrian Gonzalez (.298, 31, 101) was by far their best offensive player just like David Wright is for this Mets team. Though the Dillon Gee injury hurts the Mets now, both teams are and were carried by their starting pitching. The Padres had three starters, Clayton Richard (14-9, 3.75), Jon Garland (14-12, 3.47) and Mat Latos (14-10. 3.92) win 14 games for them while the Mets should expect at least the same from RA Dickey, Johan Santana and Jon Niese. (The fact that Dickey has 12 wins to this point raises the bar higher for the amount of wins he should finish with.) The Padres also got some production from the bottom of their rotation led by contributions from Wade LeBlanc (8-12, 4.25) and Kevin Correia (10-10, 5.40). They got some important starts from Chris Young and Tim Stauffer, similar to how the Mets will need to get some important starts from Matt Harvey, Miguel Batista and perhaps another starter down the stretch. Offensively, the current Mets have more to offer. They have power hitters such as Ike Davis and Lucas Duda that the Padres did not have. The 2010 Padres, outside of Gonzalez, were led in HR by Wil Venable's 13 and RBIs by Chase Headley's 58. It is likely, barring a disaster or injury, that Davis and Duda should easily surplant those numbers. So, if the Mets starting pitching could be on par with the Padres of then and the Mets may have a better offensive team, they should do what they can to change the glaring difference between these two teams, THE BULLPEN! San Diego had a classic bullpen that is better than people even give it credit for. Everybody knows about the 2010 version of Heath Bell (6-1, 47 saves, 1.93) and the huge seasons from Mike Adams (4-1, 1.76) and Luke Gregorson (4-7, 3.22 in 80 games). Joe Thatcher was their lefty specialist and was awesome, going 1-0, 1.29 in 65 games, but it did not stop there. Ryan Webb (3-1, 2.90, 54 games) and Ernesto Frieri (1-1, 1.71, 33) made major contributions. Add in Edwin Mujica (2-1, 3.62, 59) and Stauffer (6-5, 1.85, 32 games, 7 starts) and the Padres went 8 deep with relievers performing at a quality level. If the Mets are going to have any chance of matching the 2010 Padres (or make it to the postseason), they have to make upgrading the bullpen the top priority. Tim Byrdak and Bobby Parnell are constants and Frank Francisco should be ok when he gets back. But, Francisco has had his issues and Parnell is no money in the bank. Mets fans would sign up for the three of them to be consistent, but thats unlikely to happen. Even if it did, thats only three pitchers in a seven men bullpen that could be counted on, if you call it that. Jon Rauch has pitched better lately, but Ramon Ramirez has not gotten the job done. Perhaps the Mets could get a big second half from Pedro Beato and Josh Edgin. But they still need to add two quality arms to this staff, and it needs to happen soon. If I could make the call, I would start with Kansas City's Jonathan Broxton. He could come in here and be the undisputed closer. But one move is not going to change the disaster that is this bullpen. They will have to make an additional move, such as Oakland's Grant Balfour, to stabilize things. Once two dependable relievers are added, the rest could work itself out. The team should not worry about roster spots. Batista may be the first one out, followed by Ramirez, then Rauch. If that makes the pen better, so be it. The looks of a pen that starts with Broxton as the closer, followed by Francisco, Parnell, Balfour, Byrdak and two of the better pitching others such as Beato, Edgin, Rauch, Ramirez, Batista, and even Jenrry Mejia will give the team the chance it does not have now. The bullpen has been the team's achilles heal over the past several seasons dating back to 2008. If the organization does not get this now, they never will. Sandy Alderson owes it to the team that has been overperforming and if he does not, it will be a slap in the face to his players. Not to mention the fans, who are starting to buy in to the way this team plays. If the bullpen is not improved, it will be another long summer and a second half that Mets fans are getting used to seeing.